So one of the questions i get asked most often is where do you get ideas for what to test. My usual problem is prioritising tests but that’s the topic for another article.
So here is my top 5 places you should be using to get ideas of what to test and your boss is not one of them.
- Analytics – your web analytics is a gold mine for pages to optimise. Look at you landing pages to see what’s converting well and poorly. Is there anything that stands out from the good performers that is missing from the bad performers. Are the top converting pages all for a particular product. If so can you push that product on your homepage. The list of ideas is endless. TOP TIP user flow in GA is a godsend.
- Your sales team/call centre – Ask them over drinks what they like and like about your site. The drinks just means they are more likely to tell the truth. they also deal with customers on a daily basis.
- User surveys – use a survey kit such as iPerceptions or Qualaroo and ask users what they cam to your site for and what made them leave. Open text answer boxes give better insights then check boxes but take more time to analyse.
- Session recordings – Session recording can be a gold mine for UX because instead of being told what a customer had problems with you can see it. This is great for stuff like load time issues, errors on forms or seeing what paths users take through your pages.
- Coffee shop/Pub – Find a venue with a clientèle that matches your ideal customer then pop down. Offer to buy people a coffee/beer/cake etc. In return you just want them to go on your site and see what they think. Do they have issues with your form? Do they understand your UVPs?
There are many places to know where to test but basing your testing on data and research will ensure that you have more big changes in conversions and less test that show little to no change.